"Sure we'd invite Hitler to speak", says Columbia dean

The Dean of Columbia, John Coatsworth, said in an intervew that, yes, they would invite Hitler to speak if he were around today.

Well, sure. He was a rousing orator. And he was a vegetarian and loved children and dogs.

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The Do It Now Foundation survives

click images to enlarge

Way back in the day (meaning, here, 1971-73), I worked two years full-time (for a subsistence stipend of $150 a month) at a Crisis & Drop-in Center, in Kent, Washington. We used a lot of educational materials from the Do It Now Foundation, which wasn't always popular with the authorities and funding agencies. Why? They focused on the immediately dangerous drugs like speed, heroin, PCP, and barbiturates, and didn't sweat the more organic drugs.

Do It Now's spokespeople were not popular with the establishment either. . .folks like Grace Slick, Frank Zappa, Jimi Hendrix, John Sebastian, and others. bNot to mention the garish graphics and typography, and illustrations by people like Robert Crumb, and the cartoons of the Furry Freak Brothers. But it worked. By not peddling a lot of false information, they established credibility.


click to enlarge - this book was great, and we bought them by the case


Do It Now's attitude was basically, if it grows in the ground (e.g., marijuana, peyote, mushrooms), it's not so bad. Although their educational materials were great, this pragmatic approach was not popular, as I mentioned, with the authorities, and even with many of our supporters and even workers.

I found Do It Now on-line the other day, still doing their good work, although they've definitely moderated their stance, as well as branched out into educating people about safe sex, crystal meth, and alcohol.



Click here to hear Frank Zappa's hilarious anti-speed Public Service Announcement.
Click here to read their newsletter from 1971--it is a fascinating time-capsule.

You can visit their web site here.
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Some masks from my collection

These are a couple of my favorites. I believe they are American,

and were part of a hear no evil,see no evil set. I never did locate

the speak no evil mask.

An Indonesian bird of prey mask. The beaks sticks out about

one foot from the mask. It is ornately carved and painted.

These masks are not necessarily my favorites, but my favorites of those where I have photos. My favorite is a beautiful African mask purchased for me by Kevin Curran and Kris Kruse, followed by the three piece mask from Ceylon, and the large tin mask (both of which are pictured here).


I don't know where these three masks came from; I bought them as one lot on e-bay.
They seem likely to be American.


"Stink-eye" by the American outsider artist Audrey Leanza.
I also own a couple of her paintings. I bought this from her directly.

A leather mask. Probably American.

A Mexican mask of Fido.

I own 96 masks, of all sizes and shapes. Most of them are wooden, but about ten are steel or tin, two are ceramic, a Japanese one is made from some sort of paper mache, and one is made from leather.

This thin sheet metal mask has a great rust patina. It is two feet tall.

Maybe my second favorite mask, from Ceylon.

This is a very 3D mask, with removable ears.

The collection includes two vintage catcher's masks, one of which is 100 years old. The masks originate in Mexico, Thailand, Bali, Ceylon, Hawaii, Alaska, Japan, Indonesia, Ghana, Guatemala, Zimabwe, Chad, Senegal, and a few even come from the USA.

A japanese mask made from iron and painted green. This Buddha

weights about ten pounds.

The first mask I bought was at Pike Place Market-- a subtle, very geometric African mask from Ghana. I later started buying masks on our trips to Mexico, and also on eBay (which in the early days had many great masks at reasonable prices).

A horsehead, probably from Mexico. It has a mane

of horse-hair and a rope bridle.

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The Brady Bunch does porn

Take nine Bradys from the blended family, toss in Alice the housekeeper, put them in every permutation and combination nine can provide, and you have Not The Bradys XXX, a new porn film. They even have their own myspace page.

Defamer said "The number of taboo combinations suggested by the iconic 3x3 grid is seemingly infinite, from Bobby and Cindy's mutual sexual awakening, to frustrated middle-child Jan hate-f***ing her more popular sister Marcia, to the everyone-on-Alice, "pork chopsh n' apple shaush" scenario we've so often returned to in our deepest, most forbidden Brady fantasies."



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The O.J. Press conference interloper

Whoever this guy is, he's fantastic! What a great act.


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Painting: The Six

click to enlarge

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Indecision 2008's profile of Rudy

I like Comedy Central's Indecision 2008 web site. Here is their profile of Rudy Giuliani--a subtle, but nice jab,

Full Name: Rudolph William Louis Giuliani
Party: Democrat Independent Republican
Date of Birth: May 28, 1944
Official Website: http://www.joinrudy2008.com/
Number of Wives: 1 2 3
Favorite Two Numbers: 9, 11
Famous Quote: "Freedom is about authority."

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Aviophobia, Part 22

I don't know how much you fly, but have you ever noticed that when you're about to fly somewhere, everyone reminds you to "have a safe trip." I realize it's a sweet sort of blessing or good wishes for fliers. But wouldn't it make more sense to wish that when I was climbing the wheel of the car, where I might actually have an impact on the outcome of the trip? About the only thing in my power to do to have a safe trip on a plane is not freak out and break down the cockpit door and strangle the captain and first mate.

I just got back from a trip to Newport Beach, but I had one of my more unpleasant T.S.A. experiences of late. This time I had cut it really close--I got into the security line with about 40 minutes before my plane took off. I don't know if they do this at random, if I was profiled, or what, but the woman who checks your driver's license and boarding pass, just said "Come with me." And she led me to the special, elite, bad-ass TSA security section. Only a handful of people were there getting the once over. And it was quite a once over. When I set off the metal detector (due to having a stainless steel hip), I received the most thorough going over I have ever received. I have probably flown forty times this year, but never had this treatment. It wasn't invasive or anything, just paintstakingly thorough and methodical.



As I was being patted and frisked, two other TSA stooges went through my bags. One guy unfolded every shirt, unrolled every sock, and opened every bottle of liquid I was carrying in my TSA approved plastic pouch, and the other guy took my shoes over to a special machine (presumably one that sniffs plastique explosive), and after the shoes, he went over to another machine with my laptop, my smartphone, my Sennheiser headphones, my Nintendo DS, and my iPod, and gave them some sort of electronic scan.

By the time I got to the gate, they had closed the doors. I could get another flight by paying $400, or I could hope for the best and go standby two and a half hours later.

Selah.
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O.J. now and then, then and now

I Ride The Short Bus

It's become so fashionable, they have their own web site: Republican Sex Offenders

I don't know if Democrats are able to "score" without offending, or if it's just the preferred modus operandi of the G.O.P., but the Republicans have accumulated a formidable record in the sex-offender sweepstakes. Republican Sex Offenders is compiling a rapidly growing list of G.O.P. miscreants.

jack writing in from Newport Beach, California
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Los Lobos: One Time One Night, video and lyrics

This is one of my favorite songs by Los Lobos, an American treasure-trove of roots music. The song is all the more poignant because it's Los Lobos and is simultaneously infectious and heartbreaking. Since I became a fan in the mid-eighties, I've always loved David Hidalgo's tenor voice, and Cesar Rosas' too. I've probably seen Los Lobos perform four times over the years, usually at the Bumbershoot arts festival in Seattle, although I think I saw them once in Berkeley or Oakland. . .who knows? They toured a lot with both Bob Dylan and The Grateful Dead in the late 80's and early 90's. It might have been at one of their shows...




One time one night lyrics

A wise man was telling stories to me
About the places he had been to
And the things that he had seen
A quiet voice is singing something to me
An age old song about the home of the brave
In this land here of the free
One time one night in America
A lady dressed in white with the man she loves
Standing along the side of their pick up truck
A shot rang out in the night
Just when everything seemed right
Another headline written down in America
The guy that lived next door in three oh five
took the kids to the park and disappeared 'bout half past nine
Who will ever know how much she loved them so
That dark night alone in America
A quiet voice is singing something to me
An age old song 'bout the home of the brave and this land here of the free,
One time one night in America
Four small boys playing ball in the parking lot
A preacher, a teacher, and the other became a cop
A car skidded into the rain
Making the last little one a saint
One more light goes out in America
A young girl tosses a coin in the wishing well
She hopes for a heaven while for her there's just this hell
She gave away her life to become somebody's wife
Another wish unanswered in America
People having so much faith
Die too soon while all the rest come late
We write a song that no one sings
On a cold black stone where a lasting peace will finally bring
The sunlight plays upon my window pane
I wake up to a world that's still the same
My father said to be strong
That a good man could never do wrong
In a dream I had last night in America
A wise man was telling stories to me
about the places he had been to and the things that he had seen
A quiet voice is singing something to me
An age old song 'bout the home of the brave and this land here of the free,
One time one night in America
One time one night in America
One time one night in America
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